Scott Kazmir

The Houston Astros are loading up for a pennant race. Ditto for the Toronto Blue Jays. Quit rubbing your eyes. That's not a misprint. If it seems like baseball has been turned upside down — with long-time doormats now on top and former powers such as Atlanta and Philadelphia in white-flag mode — you wouldn't be far off. But here's the thing: It's really not an anomaly. Baseball has always played the parity game as well or better than other major league sports, even though it's the only one that doesn't have a salary cap. Sure, the Yankees and Dodgers of the world will always have an edge because of their seemingly limitless resources, but...

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The Houston Astros are loading up for a pennant race. Ditto for the Toronto Blue Jays. Quit rubbing your eyes. That's not a misprint. If it seems like baseball has been turned upside down — with long-time doormats now on top and former powers such as...

The Mets finally landed the bat they were looking for in Yoenis Cespedes just ahead of Friday's trade deadline, and Cole Hamels confirmed he blocked a trade to Houston before Philadelphia dealt its ace to Texas. Sixteen trades were made Friday ahead of...

Here are the latest developments as Major League Baseball hits a deadline Friday for trades where players do not first have to pass through waivers (all times Eastern): 7:20 p.m. One more deal announced, bringing the total for the deadline day to 16...

With mere hours until the trade deadline, the Houston Astros and Toronto Blue Jays have sent a clear message that they're going for it — making big moves to try and propel their teams into the playoffs for the first time in a long time. The Astros haven't...

The Astros have added another bat to their lineup as they make a push for the postseason, acquiring two-time All-Star outfielder Carlos Gomez from the Milwaukee Brewers. Houston also received right-hander Mike Fiers in the deal and sent four prospects...

That torrid stretch in which the Angels won 17 of 20 games from June 27 to July 22 seemed a distant memory Thursday night as Jason Castro's walk-off three-run home run sailed into the right-center field seats in Minute Maid Park.
Castro's shot off...

Toronto acquired all-star lefthander David Price from the Detroit Tigers on Thursday, the second major move in less than a week by the Blue Jays as they chase their first postseason appearance since 1993.After obtaining slugging shortstop Troy...

LOS ANGELES The A's July housecleaning continued Tuesday with the club trading infielder/outfielder Ben Zobrist to the Kansas City Royals. This deal was the third trade of a veteran who will be a free agent at season's end by Oakland. The move...

The active New York Mets acquired first-rate reliever Tyler Clippard from Oakland for a minor league pitcher Monday, completing their second trade in four days and sending another signal they're serious about contending this year. The suddenly...

The Houston Astros were a bit of a novelty in the first four weeks of the season, when they won 18 of 25 games to open a seven-game lead over the Angels.
Sure, they were improved over 2014, when they had a record of 70-92, and clearly they were not the...

The Oakland Athletics have lost four in a row and already traded one of their top pitchers when they sent Scott Kazmir to Houston. They are nobody's idea of a contender. Yet Oakland — with the worst record in the American League — is only nine games...

Not that the Angels like it, but the Houston Astros' trade for Scott Kazmir paid off so well, so soon.
On Thursday, the Astros acquired Kazmir, to form a dynamic duo with Dallas Keuchel atop the Houston rotation. On Friday, in his Astros debut, Kazmir...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. So that's what a pitching acquisition for a postseason contender can produce. Scott Kazmir, the season's first major rent-a-pitcher transaction, made the buyer look smart on Friday. He befuddled the Royals for seven innings and...

A look at what's happening all around the major leagues today: ___ NO ZZZZZS FOR ZACK Zack Greinke's scoreless streak is on hold after the Dodgers ace returned to LA to wait with his wife for the birth of their first child. Greinke has pitched 43 2-3...

Scott Kazmir is heading to his hometown Houston Astros and into the thick of a pennant race, and the Oakland Athletics are starting their summer sell-off. The A's began their expected changes leading up to the July 31 trade deadline, sending the...

If the White Sox more often had demonstrated the offensive prowess they showed in an 8-1 victory over the Indians on Thursday, perhaps the biggest story of the night wouldn't have been about the potential countdown to a Jeff Samardzija trade.
But as...

Rob Metzler, a 1998 graduate of Conard High School, is the Tampa Bay Rays scouting director. He was promoted from assistant director of amateur scouting. Metzler played baseball and hockey at Conard. A check of The Courant archives found a game in which...

OAKLAND, Calif. Drew Pomeranz began the season in the A's rotation before helping to settle a turbulent bullpen, and he was the emergency replacement Thursday after scheduled starter Scott Kazmir was traded to Houston. As it turned out, Pomeranz...

HOUSTON (AP) — The 5-foot-6, 165-pound Jose Altuve certainly isn't known for his power.
But on Thursday night, when it mattered most, he was able to propel the ball just far enough to lift the Houston Astros to a win.
Altuve homered with one out in...

OAKLAND, Calif. The dismantling of the 2015 A's began Thursday when the club traded left-handed pitcher Scott Kazmir to the Houston Astros for a couple of prospects. Unable to overcome the hole they dug for themselves in May when they lost 14 of 16,...